Chapter 119: Setting the Itinerary

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“Sew it myself?” Fugege looked at the wound on the bat king’s wing with a mix of surprise and doubt. Not to mention the fresh blood still staining the wing, the terrifying expression on the bat king alone made Fugege hesitant to approach.

Zhou Yi nodded and said, “Is this needlework something two grown men like us should be doing?”

Fugege glanced at the needle and thread in Zhou Yi’s hand, then looked down at the bat king lying on the ground and shuddered. “I wouldn’t dare. What if it bites me? I’ve heard bats suck blood!”

As she spoke, Fugege instinctively took two steps back, clearly unwilling to sew the bat king’s wound herself.

The male bat, overhearing their conversation and noticing Fugege’s demeanor, hurried over to her and bowed with folded hands. Then it flew a circle around her and knelt in reverence again.

Seeing this, Fugege swallowed nervously and looked at the bat king on the ground once more. Then, with trembling hands, she took the needle and thread from Zhou Yi.

“It’s nothing. Just like sewing clothes—just stitch it up and it’ll be fine!” Zhou Yi encouraged her.

Fugege frowned and said bitterly, “How exactly do you sew clothes?”

Zhou Yi slapped his forehead in realization. Fugege was of noble birth, having just left the palace a month ago with all her needs met—when had she ever sewn clothes before?

At that moment, Baozi and Xiaocui returned. Being younger and of similar age, they got along well and didn’t pay much attention to the customary proprieties between men and women. Their playful banter made them look like a pair of happy rivals.

“Gege, what are you doing?” Xiaocui asked, standing behind Fugege in confusion.

Fugege, seeing Xiaocui return like a savior, quickly got up and handed her the needle and thread. “Treat this big rat’s wound—you take it!”

Xiaocui glanced at the wound on the bat king’s wing and frowned. “Is this a request or an order?”

Fugege shot her a glance and said with a warm but stern tone, “If it were up to you, would I be asking?”

Upon hearing it was a plea, Xiaocui hastily handed the needle and thread back to Fugege, waving her hands. “I’m scared of this too. You do it yourself!”

“Then I order you!” Fugege’s eyes widened as she stared at Xiaocui.

Seeing Fugege’s determined look, Xiaocui dared not refuse and tremblingly took the needle and thread, crouching down to sew the bat king’s wing.

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“Ah, it’s just sewing a cut, and none of you dare. Let me do it!” Baozi said, biting the cap off a wine bottle and tilting the mouth towards the bat king’s mouth.

“Here, take a sip. After you drink it, the pain will go away!”

The bat king hesitated, unsure whether to trust Baozi and didn’t drink immediately.

Baozi pried open the bat king’s mouth and started pouring the wine inside.

The male bat, seeing this, thought Baozi was attacking the bat king and opened its mouth to bite Baozi, but Baozi waved it away.

After a while, Baozi had poured nearly half the bottle of white wine into the bat king but was stopped by Zhou Yi from giving more. Though the bat king was large-looking, it weighed only about twenty pounds. That much wine—about three taels—would make even a poor drinker drunk, let alone a bat.

Baozi didn’t care and took the needle and thread from Xiaocui, bending down to start sewing the bat king’s wing.

No one had ever seen Baozi show such toughness, so they turned their heads, unwilling to watch closely. After a moment, they heard the sound of needle passing through the wing and couldn’t help but look again.

Baozi was usually careless, but his movements sewing the wound were gentle, careful—stitching the thin membranous wing neatly.

The bat king, knowing it was being treated, endured the pain silently without screaming. The male bat stayed by its side, looking even more distressed than the bat king itself.

The wound was small, and with Baozi’s nimble hands, it was sewn up within minutes. He then took the wine bottle, tilted his head back, took a big gulp, and sprayed some on the wound to disinfect it.

Seeing his work done, Baozi clapped and stood up, saying, “Such a small matter shouldn’t require me to get involved personally!” Then he took another big swig from the bottle.

“Yi-ge, does this cancel out my fault for losing the flying corpse?” Baozi rubbed his bald head and said.

“Cancel out what? That flying corpse is still soaking in the Blood Pool. If it stays there much longer, it’ll become a drought demon in less than two months. By then, even the three of us together couldn’t take it down,” Mu Chen complained.

“A drought demon? Then what are we waiting for? Let’s enter the cave and catch it now!” Baozi said anxiously.

“We saw the flying corpse in the Blood Pool this morning. It’s cautious after being frightened. Going now won’t help. I’m feeling a bit stifled lately and want to go home first,” Zhou Yi said.

He had been homesick since Wutai Mountain and was determined to return home for peace of mind before visiting Dunhua to see Zhou Danjiang.

By now, the bat king’s bleeding had stopped. After drinking the wine, it felt better and tried to stand to thank everyone but suddenly collapsed again.

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Baozi saw the bat king fall and worried he had made a mistake. He hurried to check, but upon seeing the situation, he laughed heartily.

“This beast is just drunk, haha!” Baozi chuckled happily.

As everyone was about to leave, the bat king swayed to its feet and approached Baozi. Baozi turned and asked, “What do you want?”

The bat king gestured with its forelimbs at Baozi, but Baozi couldn’t understand after watching for a while.

“That beast wants more wine!” Mu Chen glanced at Baozi.

Baozi quickly took out the remaining half bottle of white wine from his pocket. “You want this?”

The bat king nodded eagerly, making strange squeaking noises like a mouse. Everyone laughed again, easing Zhou Yi’s lingering unease.

Zhou Yi paid little attention to what Chuan Youzhi and Ji Liang were doing. Following them now would only waste more time. His plan was to visit his mother at home and then go to Dunhua to see Zhou Danjiang.

The journey back to Baishan Village was long and unsuitable for traveling overnight. The group didn’t return to the town’s inn. Baozi went out and hunted two rabbits and a wild chicken. They sat around the cave, roasting meat and drinking wine, chatting and laughing, making for a pleasant evening.

“I heard there’s a water monster in the Tianchi. Not sure if it’s true,” Fugege whispered softly into Zhou Yi’s ear after dinner, leaning on his shoulder.

“There are many folk tales, but I’ve never seen one. Sleep now. When we get back to Baishan Village, I’ll have my fiancée—who isn’t officially wed yet—take you to see Tianchi for yourself,” Zhou Yi said.

He dared not let his feelings for Fugege develop naturally. Born of royal blood, her manners and speech were impeccable. Any man would feel drawn to her, himself included. But Wu Qian was his fiancée, and he could not betray her devoted love.

Yet in doing so, was he not betraying Fugege?

No more words were spoken that night. Early the next morning, the group set out northward through the dew...